Smile
by onlymystory
Summary: Stiles tries to get a genuine smile out of Derek. Mostly inspired by the fact that Hoechlin & O'Brien have ridiculously addictive smiles .


Stiles was on a mission.

Coax a smile out of Derek Hale. And not one of those trademark smirks or on a mission smiles.

Nope, Stiles was after the real deal.

Sourwolf needed to smile.

So Stiles tried. And tried. And tried. All he got were baffled looks, growls, and one unfortunate instance where Derek shoved Stiles up against his car and yelled at him.

Okay maybe that wasn't that unfortunate.

He'd kinda missed having Derek push him into things, which he knew sounded really bad but usually that meant Derek was really close. Stiles didn't think he should be blamed if he pushed back with his hips instead of his hands.

Besides, Stiles had his existential gay crisis, or as Danny called it, his very literal Derek crisis, over a month ago.

It was time for desperate measures. Because Stiles was pretty sure his mission was still worth his time.

Which brought Stiles to Peter. Just because Peter had started behaving himself didn't mean Stiles liked (or trusted) him. But Peter was also his best chance.

Derek's birthday was in two days. The wolf was adamantly against celebrating but Scott of all people convinced Derek it would help the pack bond. Everyone agreed to a very simple dinner and movie night, with Stiles agreeing to order pizza.

Stiles however was determined to make the day special without going so overboard that Derek got pissed.

"Why exactly are you invested in Derek's birthday?" asked Peter once Stiles finished talking.

"Uh…"

"The truth, Stiles. Surely you can handle that once in your life," demanded Peter.

"I want to see Derek smile."

"You can't get someone else to help you?"

Stiles debated how honest he wanted to be. "Maybe I want to be the reason behind the smile," he admitted.

"You could just tell Derek that and get what you want," muttered Peter.

"What?!" Stiles had to have heard Peter wrong.

"Dinner," said the older wolf as though he hadn't revealed anything.

"Dinner?"

"Yes, a meal commonly served in the evening."

Stiles rolled his eyes at Peter.

Peter sighed. "Birthdays were always a big deal with the Hales. Each kid had a favorite meal. You could do that for Derek."

"It wouldn't bring up bad memories?" asked Stiles.

Peter shook his head. "I don't think so."

"That's perfect! Thanks." Stiles jumped up from the table and started to walk away.

"Stiles," said Peter in exasperation. "Do you want to know what to fix?"

"Oh." Stiles turned red and returned to his seat.

Which led to him swearing at an oven that burned the garlic bread for the third time in a row. His house had been co-opted for the party and since his dad was out of town, they didn't have to be so quiet.

Stiles got everything Peter told him, which admittedly wasn't much. Spaghetti Bolognese with homemade meatballs (according to a Hale family recipe), garlic bread, and blackberry cobbler. Stiles kind of liked that Derek had simpler tastes. So he swore one more time at the oven, put the last tray of bread in and sat in front of the oven to make sure it was right.

He was setting everything on the kitchen table when the pack arrived. Stiles could hear Derek grumbling the entire time. The Alpha stopped short when he reached the doorway. "What is that?"

"Dinner, dude," said Jackson, pushing past Derek.

"I thought we were doing pizza," said Boyd.

Derek hadn't moved and Stiles was trying not to freak out.

"I changed my mind," answered Stiles.

Erica grabbed the napkins out of stiles' hands to finish setting the table. "Spaghetti works for me."

"Spaghetti Bolognese," corrected Stiles and this time Derek physically jerked.

"Did you guys make dessert too?" asked Scott.

Stiles nodded.

"Blackberry cobbler," said Derek.

"How'd you know that?" asked Jackson.

Derek ignored them. "Why?"

"Because you deserve a chance to celebrate the good memories," answered Stiles. He had no interest in being vague on this point.

It took 2.3 seconds for Stiles to see it was worth it.

Derek's lips curled up and his eyes kind of crinkled and he flashed a soft but genuine smile. "Thank you."

Stiles couldn't help himself. He grinned and clapped just once in glee at accomplishing his mission.

And then it was Derek's turn to wonder what he could do to see Stiles light up like that more often.

Later that night, as everyone relaxed in front of the TV and Danny & Allison wouldn't stop quoting The Breakfast Club over the actual movie, Derek got his chance. He'd claimed his spot next to Stiles, something no one really questioned. Every pack member had a favorite seat.

Derek turned his head towards Stiles. "Stiles," he whispered. The others were distracted.

Stiles looked at him. "Yeah?"

"Thank you. I…" he didn't really know how to explain his feelings.

Stiles reached out and squeezed Derek's hand, figuring the reassurance was better than words. His eyes lit up as he gave Derek a smile. He knew what it was like to rarely get a good memory and the inability to express how it felt.

Derek took a chance. He twisted his hand under Stiles, lacing his fingers through the other's hand.

Stiles looked at Derek in surprise. He didn't want to reach more than necessary if this wasn't what he thought but he also wasn't one to waste an opportunity.

And Derek's hand was strong and warm in his and the back of his hand could feel Derek's leg muscle underneath and it was all a little too perfect for Stiles to care about being cautious.

Derek was freaking out. Then Stiles slid just a bit closer to him and didn't let go. They stayed like that until the movie ended and in an unspoken mutual agreement, broke apart.

After that it was a matter of cleaning up and kicking the pack out and promising Lydia he would be her shopping partner the next day.

Stiles finally walked into his bedroom and leaned against the door with a sigh. He smiled again at the memory of Derek's hand in his.

"I really hope I'm the reason for that smile," said a voice by the window.

Stiles looked up to see Derek standing awkwardly in the dark. "You are," he whispered, knowing the wolf could still hear him.

"Good," said Derek with a self-satisfied growl.

Stiles stared, not really sure what to do next.

"Why'd you make that dinner?" asked Derek.

"I wanted to see you smile."

Derek took a step closer. "Is that all?"

Stiles mentally told caution to take a hike. "I wanted to be the one you were smiling at."

"Is that all you want?" Derek's eyes were glaring in the darkness.

Stiles swallowed. In for a penny, in for a pound. "I want…"

Derek was right in front of him.

"I want…" Stiles looked up at him, not sure how much more ambiguity he could take. "Derek," he whispered.

Derek stopped talking. He pushed Stiles up against the door and leaned in to brush his lips across Stiles'. "Me too," he said quietly before starting to stand back and give Stiles space.

"Oh hell no," muttered Stiles, grabbing Derek's jacket and yanking him back. Stiles pressed his lips against Derek's mouth. "I want a hell of a lot more than that."

And then Derek was growling and kissing Stiles and Stiles was looping his fingers through Derek's belt loops and pulling him against him. Stiles' fingers wove through Derek's hair and Derek lifted Stiles up against him.

Stiles grinned as Derek's tongue traced the outline of his lips. "Definitely worth it."


End file.
